Knowing the bed needed to be as comfortable as if we were at home – for us to want to go on long adventures with no compromise on comfort – as well as being aware of head space once the bed was installed as we are both tall humans (6ft +), but also not skimping on under-bed storage…. Meant coming up with a design that was both aesthetic and functional, a challenge.
All I had was a design in my head and a rough sketch of the type of bed I wanted in the van.
Cue Max’s Dad… Stewart!
Turns out Stewart is rather handy with metal/welding and can interpret my verbal design instructions and dodgy scetches perfectly!
We started with some custom brackets, designed to use the existing mounting points/bolt holes in the floor.
Then the frame…
We primed and painted the steel black, to prevent rust. VERY important!
Ikea had the perfect slat solution! Which allowed us to have an Australian standard queen sized bed in our van!
Once the bed was installed, we chose a Koala mattress. We liked the reviews and the size, height, weight and style were perfect. The online shopping option was super convenient, as purchasing the mattress fell right in the middle of Victoria’s COVID lockdown, so getting to a store was impossible.
Having a queen sized mattress delivered to your door in a small rectangular box was quite amusing!
Bed Frame: Max’s Dad (with assistance from us!)
Bed Slats: https://www.ikea.com/au/en/p/luroey-slatted-bed-base-00160215/
Mattress: https://au.koala.com